Alan Pardew accepts Crystal Palace are being hunted down

31 March 2016 14:23

Alan Pardew admits the teams below his free-falling Crystal Palace side are now 'hunting them down'.

The Eagles head to West Ham on Saturday without a win in the Premier League for 13 matches.

They still lie seven points clear of the relegation zone but Pardew insists they are not safe yet.

"We have a challenge in front of us," said the Eagles boss.

"The teams below us are now going to hunt points and hunt it down, and unfortunately we are in a position to catch so we have to really up our game.

"Our desire and commitment can't be faulted but we need to turn that into one or two victories.

"It's a little bit easier when you have the points under your belt to look at other teams and say 'they'll be fine', but we're not.

"We're in a run of form in the league where we have no momentum and we are going to have to grind it out.

"We're not sleepwalking, we're not day-dreaming, we are fully committed to getting the points as soon as we can."

Pardew also took the time to pay tribute to Ronnie Corbett, the much-loved star of The Two Ronnies and a Palace fan, who died on Thursday aged 85.

Corbett attended matches for many years at Selhurst Park, the nearest Premier League ground to his Croydon home.

"We've lost one of our smallest fans," said Pardew. "It's a sad day, he contributed so much to light entertainment in Britain.

"When I was growing up him and Ronnie Barker had us in stitches with 'four candles' etc, etc.

"He was a representative of the club and it's such a sad day for his family. We hope they are bearing up and we send our love to them."

Source: PA